Batting pieces for paper piecing projects and related methods

ABSTRACT

A system for English Paper Piecing and paper piecing quilting projects comprised of using pre-cut individual pieces of nonwoven batting having selected shapes and sizes as foundation pieces for creation of the patches used in the paper piecing project.

PRIORITY CLAIM

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No.62/914,872 filed on Oct. 14, 2019, which is hereby incorporated byreference.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is generally directed to a method of hand piecingused by some quilters known as English Paper Piecing, and sometimessimply referred to as “Paper Piecing,” which is a detailed method ofhand sewing and stitching that is frequently used by quilters to createdecorative designs for the tops of quilts.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

With regard to quilting projects, pieces of fabric with certain shapesare sometimes called “patches,” and they can be joined side by side withseams that are sewn by hand, or with the aid of a sewing machine, in aprocess called “piecing” or “sewing a seam.” The patches may be all thesame shape and size, or they may be different shapes and differentsizes, but they generally will be fitted together during the piecingprocess to form “blocks” that are more elaborate combinations ofmultiple patches that have been pieced together, normally by seams sewnalong their abutting edges.

In quilting, fabric is described as having both a “right” side and a“wrong” side. The “right side” of the fabric is the decorative orpatterned side that the quilter intends to be visible at the front ofthe finished item, while the “wrong side” is the back of the fabric thatwill not be seen by observers viewing the finished quilt or quilteditem. Fabric patches are typically layered “right sides together” to sewa seam along their abutting edges, but the finished item will have allof the right sides facing up on the front of the finished item when thequilt or quilted item is complete.

English Paper Piecing (“EPP”) uses patterns or templates known as“foundation pieces,” and involves stitches being made through anoverlying fabric piece and directly through an underlying foundationpiece. In traditional paper piecing, the quilter cuts foundation piecesin a desired size and shape to serve as both a pattern and as abase/foundation for a patch that will be constructed from fabric for aspecific quilting project. A foundation piece is typically made ofpaper, freezer paper, specialty paper, cardstock, cardboard, or even, insome cases, plastic. The foundation piece is cut by the quilter into aspecific shape having a specific size, both of which are determined bythe shape and size of the fabric patch that will be made by the quilterfor inclusion in a block that will be made later during the piecingprocess for a specific overall project. Normally in EPP projects, beforesewing begins, the foundation pieces are cut by the quilter into variousdesired geometric shapes with straight edges such that the fabricpatches that will be made can later be matched together at their pointsand their straight edges can be sewn together to form a block during thepiecing process that is intended for a specific project.

After the foundation pieces have been cut, the quilter then cuts a pieceof fabric (the “fabric piece”) in roughly the same shape as the pre-cutfoundation piece, but with an extra seam allowance at all of its edges(the seam allowance is usually about 3/16 to ¼″ inch) such that thefabric piece will have the same shape but will be slightly larger insize than the foundation piece. In order to create a fabric patch, thewrong side of the fabric piece is placed on the surface of thefoundation piece, the seam allowance of the fabric piece is folded overthe edges of the foundation piece, and the seam allowance is sewn orbasted directly to the foundation piece so that the foundation piece issewn together with and encased within the fabric piece on all sides andthe fabric piece is held to the foundation piece by the thread stitchesto form the fabric patch (the “EPP patch”). Once multiple EPP patchesare made by the quilter, they can be sewn together into a block.Eventually when multiple blocks are completed, they can be joinedtogether to form a whole quilt top or they can otherwise be joined to aseparate quilt top, but in either case the blocks provide the decorativeimages of the quilt top.

During the EPP process, the foundation pieces are removed from the EPPpatches prior to final completion of the quilt. Foundation pieces madeout of paper, plastic, or other similar materials cannot be left withinthe EPP patches that become part of the final quilt top because doing dowould result in a quilt that is too stiff, makes undesirable crinklingnoise when manipulated, and does not have a pleasing appearance orsoftness. Some quilters may choose to remove the foundation pieces aftera whole block is made, while others may remove each foundation pieceimmediately after each EPP patch is sewn. In either case, detaching andremoving the foundation pieces from the EPP patches is verytime-consuming and frustrating, and it often involves the use oftweezers to tear the foundation pieces out of each EPP patch. Removal ofthe foundation pieces also frequently weakens the seams holding the EPPpatch together. Removal of the foundation pieces from the EPP patches isone of the most aggravating and difficult aspects of the EPP method.

It should also be appreciated that the traditional EPP method isentirely geared toward the specific project that the quilter is workingon at the time they are performing the EPP method, such that eachfoundation piece and each of the EPP patches are cut by the quilter intosizes and shapes that are controlled by, and dependent upon, the overallquilt or quilted item that is being created by the quilter at that time,and therefore the traditional EPP method is inefficient.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide pre-cut foundationpieces that can be used in EPP that do not have to be removed from theEPP patches prior to final completion of quilts or other quilted items.By allowing the foundation pieces to remain as part of the EPP patches,the difficulty of removing the foundation pieces is avoided and theoverall integrity of each patch is maintained.

It is also an object of this invention to make the EPP method moreefficient by providing multiple pre-cut foundation pieces with variousshapes and geometric designs that can be used in a variety of differentEPP projects by the quilter, avoiding the need for re-creation or newcreation of specific foundation pieces for each specific EPP quiltingproject. It is a further object of this invention to allow for creationof EPP quilts that have superior appearance and superior insulatingproperties.

The invention hereby disclosed is best understood as providing multiplepre-cut foundation pieces with a specified shape and size that have beendie cut from nonwoven batting material. While batting material isfrequently placed between whole quilt tops and quilt bottoms duringfinal quilt assembly that occurs after the quilt tops are completed, thepresent invention involves use of batting material that has been pre-cutinto a variety of geometric shapes, such as hexagons, octagons,diamonds, squares, triangles, and other such polygonal shapes, or evencircles, for use as foundation pieces for EPP projects. Because mostquilts will eventually incorporate batting anyway, the use of battingmaterial that is pre-cut into various geometric shapes and sizes for useas foundation pieces in EPP projects will not interfere with theeventual appearance or softness of the completed quilt or quilted item,and, if anything, will simply enhance the appearance and the thermalinsulating properties of the completed quilts or quilted items.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the nonwoven batting usedfor the pre-cut foundation pieces is a 100% polyester batting. However,a nonwoven batting material made out of cotton or a polyester-cottonblend may also be used for pre-cutting a variety of nonwoven battingfoundation pieces having predetermined sizes and shapes. In a furtherembodiment, such polyester, cotton, or polyester-cotton blended nonwovenbattings may be coated or impregnated with a stiffening resin.

In an additional embodiment, the pre-cut foundation pieces havingvarious geometric patterns and sizes may also be coated with an adhesiveon at least one side such that they will have at least one “tacky” sideand the wrong side of a fabric piece can be temporarily adhered to thatside of the pre-cut nonwoven batting foundation piece using the adhesiveprior to the interconnecting seams being placed through the fabric pieceand the foundation piece during sewing to create the EPP patches.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a back perspective view of an embodiment of the inventionduring use.

FIG. 2 is a back view of an embodiment of the invention during use.

FIG. 3 is a back perspective view of an embodiment of the inventionduring use.

FIG. 4 is a back view of an embodiment of the invention during use.

FIG. 5 is a back view of an embodiment of the invention during use.

FIG. 6 is a front view of a sewn EPP block comprised of multiple patchescreated using an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 7 is a back view of an embodiment of the invention during use.

FIG. 8 is a front view of a sewn EPP block comprised of multiple patchescreated using an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 9 is a front view of one of the pre-cut, nonwoven battingfoundation pieces of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a front view of one of the pre-cut, nonwoven battingfoundation pieces of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a front view of one of the pre-cut, nonwoven battingfoundation pieces of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a front view of one of the pre-cut, nonwoven battingfoundation pieces of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 illustrates a pre-cut, hexagonal-shaped foundation piece 20 madeof nonwoven batting material being applied to the wrong side of asomewhat larger hexagonal-shaped fabric piece 10. The hexagonal dottedlines 30 on the fabric piece 10 are intended to illustrate the fact thatthe foundation piece 20 is smaller than the fabric piece 10. Once thefoundation piece 20 is centered and placed against the wrong side of thefabric piece 10, the areas between the six edges of the foundation piece20 and the six outer edges of the fabric piece 10 will define six areasof seam allowance 15. As shown in FIG. 2, the seam allowance 15 for eachof the six edges of the fabric piece 10 is folded over the correspondingsix edges of the foundation piece 20 such that the foundation piece 20will be partially encased or enveloped within the fabric piece 10.

As shown in FIG. 5, the hexagonal-shaped foundation piece 20 that ispartially encased within the hexagonal-shaped fabric piece 10 is used tocreate the hexagonal-shaped EPP patch 100 that is sewn with stitches 25that are sewn through the seam allowances 15 of the fabric piece 10 andthrough the foundation piece 20 in order to hold the fabric piece 10 inthe same size and geometric pattern as the underlying foundation piece20, thereby yielding the hexagonal-shaped EPP patch 100. As shown byFIG. 6, multiple hexagonal-shaped EPP patches 100 may be combined andsewn together to form a block 105. In the prior art, the foundationpiece 20 would have been made of paper, plastic or some other rigid orsemi-rigid material, and it would have been manually removed eitherafter the individual EPP patch 100 is constructed (as shown in FIG. 5),or after the block 105 is completed (as shown in FIG. 6). With thepresent invention, the foundation piece 20 is a pre-cut piece ofnonwoven batting material that is not removed and remains part of theEPP patches, both in the completed blocks 105 and in the final completedquilt or quilted item.

FIGS. 3, 4, 7, 8 are variations on the same themes as discussed abovewith regard to FIGS. 1, 2, 5, 6. FIG. 3 shows a diamond-shapedfoundation piece 50 being placed onto the wrong side of a diamond-shapedfabric piece 40. As illustrated by the diamond-shaped dotted lines 60 onthe diamond-shaped fabric piece 40, the diamond-shaped fabric piece 40is larger than the foundation piece 50 such that the four edges of thefabric piece 40 define areas of fabric that extend beyond the four edgesof the foundation piece 50, and said areas comprise a diamond-shapedseam allowance 45. As shown in FIG. 4, the diamond-shaped seam allowance45 is folded over the four edges of the foundation piece 50 such thatthe foundation piece 50 is partially encased in the fabric piece 40. Asshown in FIG. 7, thread stitches 55 are sewn through the areas of seamallowance 45 so that a diamond-shaped EPP patch 200 is created. As shownin FIG. 8, multiple diamond-shaped EPP patches 200 formed using thefoundation pieces of the present invention may be sewn together to forma diamond-shaped block 205. As discussed previously, with the presentinvention the diamond-shaped foundation pieces 50 will not be removedfrom the EPP patches 200 or the blocks 205 because they are made of anonwoven batting material that is intended to remain part of thediamond-shaped EPP patches 200 through completion of the final quilt orquilted item. This is different from the prior art in which foundationpieces of paper, plastic, or other rigid or semi-rigid material wouldhave been removed after patches were formed or after blocks werecreated.

It should be understood that the drawings of the block patterns 105, 205are merely illustrative of a few types of blocks that may be created inthe paper piecing process by the quilter. The reality is that anincredibly wide variety of block patterns may be created using thevariously shaped and sized EPP patches corresponding to the variouslyshaped and sized nonwoven batting pieces of the present invention.

FIGS. 9-12 are simply intended to represent the fact that the pre-cutnonwoven batting foundation pieces of the present invention may come ina wide variety of geometric shapes and sizes. The pre-cut foundationpieces can come in polygonal shapes, such as triangles 60, squares 70,and octagons 80. Obviously, various other polygonal shapes likepentagons, rhomboids, stars, etc. would also be possible. FIG. 12illustrates that the pre-cut nonwoven batting foundation pieces couldeven have a circular shape 90.

It should be appreciated that kits containing multiple pre-cutfoundation pieces of nonwoven batting material having the same size andsame geometric shape could be provided for facilitating the EPP processand facilitating rapid creation of EPP patches and blocks. Likewise,kits containing multiple pre-cut foundation pieces of nonwoven battinghaving different shapes or different sizes could also be provided forfacilitating the EPP process and making the rapid creation of EPPpatches and blocks much easier. This would be of great benefit to bothnovice and experienced quilters alike.

As discussed previously, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, thenonwoven batting used for the pre-cut foundation pieces is a 100%polyester batting, such as, for example, the Thermore® batting productthat is manufactured by Hobbs Bonded Fibers NA, LLC. Such 100% polyesterbatting is advantageous because it does not shrink when washed, it willnot wrinkle, and it is thin enough and lightweight enough to provide alow-loft appearance that is desirable for EPP projects, yet it isdurable and sturdy enough to be used for foundation pieces that are handsewn to small, overlying fabric pieces. Polyester batting is inherentlystiff enough to hold the pattern for the fabric pieces in order to makethe EPP patches, and in that regard it performs at least as well aspaper, freezer paper, or cardboard for the purpose of serving as afoundation for the EPP patches.

In another embodiment of the invention, a nonwoven batting material madeout of cotton or a polyester-cotton blend may be used for pre-cutting avariety of foundation pieces having predetermined sizes and shapes.

In yet a further embodiment, such polyester, cotton, or polyester-cottonblended nonwoven battings may be coated or impregnated with a stiffeningresin that causes the pre-cut foundation pieces to be even stiffer sothat they are better able to hold the pattern of the EPP patches duringthe EPP process. This is not necessary with 100% polyester nonwovenbatting for the reasons discussed above, but adding a stiffening resinto cotton or poly-cotton blended nonwoven batting can greatly enhancethe stiffness of the foundation pieces and the patches. A water solublestiffening resin is preferable so that it can be washed out when thefinal completed quilt or quilted item is later washed.

In an additional embodiment, the pre-cut foundation pieces havingvarious geometric patterns and sizes may also be coated with an adhesiveon at least one side such that they will have at least one “tacky” side.In this way, the “wrong side” (back side) of a fabric piece can betemporarily adhered to that tacky side of the pre-cut nonwoven battingfoundation piece using the adhesive prior to the interconnecting seamsbeing sewn through the fabric piece and the foundation piece duringsewing to create the EPP patch. This adhesive coating that is on atleast one side of the precut foundation pieces may be covered with arelease film prior to the time that the foundation pieces are to be usedin connection with the fabric pieces to create the EPP patches. Use ofsuch release films on the tacky side of the foundation pieces will makethe process of using adhesive-coated foundation pieces in the EPP methodless messy and less difficult. The adhesive is preferrably water solubleso that it can be washed out after the final quilt or quilted item iscompleted.

In some embodiments there may be an adhesive layer on both sides of thepre-cut nonwoven batting foundation pieces, and both adhesive layers maybe covered with release films. Whether adhesive is applied to one orboth sides of the foundation pieces, the adhesives that are usedpreferably will not be heat-activated adhesives since those types ofadhesives would be inappropriate for most EPP projects that involvesmall patches being sewn by hand.

The embodiments and other features, aspects, and advantages of thepresent invention may be best understood and appreciated with referenceto the drawings, descriptions, and claims. Where used in the variousfigures of the drawings, the same numerals designate the same or similarparts. Furthermore, when the terms “top”, “bottom”, “front”, “back”,“distal”, “proximal”, “lateral”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “central”,“first”, “second”, “third”, “inside”, “internal”, “outside”, “external”,“end”, “ends”, “side”, “sides”, “edge”, “edges” and similar terms areused herein, it should be understood that, unless otherwise specificallystated or otherwise made specifically clear by context, these terms havereference only to the structure shown in the drawings as it would appearto a person viewing the drawings, and such terms are utilized in orderto facilitate describing the invention and in order to facilitate abetter understanding of the invention.

Although the invention has been described with reference to severalspecific embodiments, this description is not meant to be construed in alimiting sense. Various modifications of the disclosed embodiments, aswell as alternative embodiments of the invention, will be apparent topersons skilled in the art upon reference to the description of theinvention. It is, therefore, contemplated that the appended claims willcover such modifications that fall within the scope of the invention.

I claim:
 1. A system for English Paper Piecing and paper piecingquilting projects comprised of: Using nonwoven batting that is cut intoindividual pieces of batting having a selected shape and size, whereinthe individual pieces of batting are used as foundation pieces for paperpiecing.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the nonwoven batting is 100%polyester batting.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein the individualpieces are polygonal in shape.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein theindividual pieces of batting further comprise an adhesive coating on atleast one side.
 5. The system of claim 4, wherein the adhesive coatingis water soluble.
 6. The system of claim 5, wherein the layer ofadhesive is covered by a release film.
 7. The system of claim 1, whereinthe nonwoven batting is 100% cotton batting.
 8. The system of claim 7,wherein the individual pieces are polygonal in shape.
 9. The system ofclaim 8, wherein the cotton batting used to form the individual piecesis impregnated with a stiffening resin.
 10. The system of claim 9wherein the stiffening resin is water soluble.
 11. The system of claim10, wherein the individual pieces are coated on at least one side with alayer of adhesive.
 12. The system of claim 11, wherein the adhesive iswater soluble.
 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the layer of adhesiveis covered by a release film.
 14. The system of claim 1, wherein thenonwoven batting is a mixture of cotton and polyester.
 15. The system ofclaim 14, wherein the batting is impregnated with a water solublestiffening resin.
 16. The system of claim 15, wherein the individualpieces are coated on at least one side with a layer of adhesive.
 17. Thesystem of claim 16, wherein the adhesive is water soluble.
 18. Thesystem of claim 17, wherein the layer of adhesive is covered by arelease film.
 19. A kit for English Paper Piecing and paper piecingprojects comprised of the following: Multiple foundation piecescomprised of nonwoven batting; Wherein the foundation pieces come inpre-cut shapes and sizes.
 20. The kit of claim 19, wherein thefoundation pieces are polygonal in shape.